But there are issues to be worked out - including privacy concerns for police, suspects, victims and bystanders legal questions over who has access to the recordings and training to make sure officers are using the cameras and don't have them turned off at a critical time. The officer who shot him said he feared for his life when Brown hit him and reached for his gun. Some witnesses have said Brown had his hands up when Wilson shot him. "What happens after the meeting will determine whether we just had a feel-good session or whether we're moving toward change," Sharpton said.Ĭameras potentially could help resolve the type of disputes between police and witnesses that arose in the Ferguson shooting. Al Sharpton told reporters afterward he would convey to Brown's parents what had occurred in the meeting and expressed confidence it would bring change because Obama put his "full weight behind it." Estimates vary about the precise number of full-time, sworn law enforcement officers in communities across the U.S., though some federal government reports in recent years have placed the figure at roughly 700,000.īrown's family wants to see every police officer working the streets wearing a body camera.
The package includes $75 million to help pay for 50,000 of the small, lapel-mounted cameras to record police on the job, with state and local governments paying half the cost. Obama is proposing a three-year, $263 million spending package to increase use of body-worn cameras, expand training for law enforcement and add more resources for police department reform. Justice also has launched a broad investigation into the Ferguson Police Department. Justice Department is investigating possible civil rights violations that could result in federal charges, but investigators would need to satisfy a rigorous standard of proof.
"It violates my belief in what America can be to hear young people feeling marginalized and distrustful even after they've done everything right."Īt least for now, Obama is staying away from Ferguson in the wake of the uproar over a grand jury's decision last week not to charge Darren Wilson, the police officer who fatally shot Brown.
He said he was upset to hear the young people in the meeting describe their experiences with police. "Part of the reason this time will be different is because the president of the United States is deeply invested in making sure that this time is different," Obama said. With protests ongoing in Ferguson and across the country, Obama spoke to reporters at the end of a White House meeting with police, civil rights activists and local leaders and acknowledged the participants told him that there have been task forces in the past and "nothing happens." A grand jury has decided not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in the death of Michael Brown, whose fatal shooting sparked weeks of sometimes-violent protests.
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